Various headrests for medical or dental chairs that allow positioning of a headrest relative to a patient's head are known in the art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,111,483 (Jaeger), U.S. Pat. No. 4,111,484 (Jaeger) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,128,274 (Schmedemann) are directed primarily to the vertical positioning of a headrest relative to a patient's head. The Schmedemann patent also discloses methods for the horizontal positioning of a headrest.
Upon proper positioning, vertically and horizontally adjustable headrests can increase patient comfort with proper positioning. However, because such devices are not entirely satisfactory, headrests providing rotational movement relative to the backrest to which they are attached have been provided. Examples of such rotatively movable headrests are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,817,576 (Ciavattoni), U.S. Pat. No. Re. 29,811 (Norris) and U.S. Pat. No. 3,936,091 (Rabinowitz). However, the headrests described therein also have not been entirely satisfactory. The Ciavattoni device, for example, locks the headrest only in discrete positions defined by slots in the headrest which are engaged by the pawl mechanism of the device. The Norris device utilizes a cam-actuated locking mechanism having a cam surface which exerts a compressive force on a linking member to reduce the diameter of openings in which pivotable pins normally can rotate, thus preventing their rotation and the rotation of the headrest.
Pivoting and articulating headrests for different types of seats are also known in the art. Examples of such headrests are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,312,538 (Kennedy), U.S. Pat. No. 7,429,082 (Kraft), and in U.S. Publ. No. 2008/0290714 (Barrou). The Kennedy device is an articulating headrest for a dental chair having a unidirectional locking mechanism that prevents accidental jamming of the headrest against an object during downward movement of the dental chair. The Kennedy device, however, only provides a single pivot point along a single axis to allow positioning of the headrest between a first position and a second position. The Kraft device is a pivoting headrest for a car seat that allows swinging of the headrest from an unused position into a used position. The Barrou device is a pivoting headrest for a car seat that allows the headrest to be pivoted between a vertical position and an inclined position. These pivoting and articulating headrests provide a single pivot point and do not allow articulation of the headrest along two different axes of movement in order to provide positioning of the height and angle of the headrest.
Accordingly, it is apparent that there is a need for a simplified biarticulating headrest, for use with medical and dental chairs and the like, which can be positionally varied over various heights and angles in order to provide customized positioning of the headrest height and angle for the comfort of the patient and the healthcare provider.